What is Really Inside?

In the spring of 2004, Groundswell initiated a bronze relief sculpture project in collaboration with Brooklyn Heights Montessori and The School for International Studies. The theme of the project was unity, because young people from the two schools, both located on the same street, had had no social contact with each other prior to this program. The team of twelve youth and two teachers who participated in the project represented some of the diverse communities living in and around Boerum Hill. Each bronze relief design was a collaboration by two students. Throughout the creation of their bronze pieces, the youth became adept at explaining the complex artistic process and the steps they took to develop their images. The project became a source of pride for the youth artists, as an artwork that both beautified the neighborhood and informed the community about important issues affecting their lives. The finished pieces were installed throughout the neighborhood, along with written statements from the artists.